Topics Sanitation

A Roman aqueduct in Segovia, Spain, 2006

The Water and Drainage History of Philadelphia, Part 3

A black-and-white image showing several figures standing on the shore, with a boat, several other figures and a building in the background

The Water and Drainage History of Philadelphia, Part 2

Down Under!

Black-and-white aerial photo of a creek bend with industrial buildings surrounding it

The Sad History of Frankford Creek

Dauphin and Sydenham car crash, Jan. 17, 1978

Norman Lofton inspects sewer at Ditman and Sheffield, 1987

William Penn balks at drinking the "mixed drink" offered him: Schuylkill water, mixed with pollution from the upstream sources named. Editorial cartoon by Fred Morgan, Philadelphia Inquirer, April 6, 1899. One of a series of cartoons drawn by Morgan protesting the state of the city's drinking water and trying to encourage the passage of legislation authorizing the construction of a water filtration system.

Half a Century of Clean Water

Black-and-white photo of industrial tank installation with smokestacks and factories in the background

Emscher Tank Installation at Essen Nord, Germany

Black-and-white image of a tray with three compartments and four small glass cylinders

Drain water from sludges obtained from sedimentation, septic and Emscher tanks

Captain Sewer and Michael Nutter, 1998

Captain Sewer and Michael Nutter, 1998

Rudolph Hering

Rudolph Hering

Typical House Drainage, Combined and Separate Systems (2008.001.0032)

Typical house drainage